The thing is that excessive speed makes accidents more likely and worsens their outcomes; that should not be controversial and is backed by plenty of evidence.
The village where we have the house has recently put in some speed calming measures (they went with chicanes where the road enters the village). They did so after some speed monitoring - despite a 50kph limit, dropping to 30kph in the centre of the village many drivers were recorded at over 100kph through the village - I’m afraid that rather suggests you are wrong about “sensible drivers”.
By the way that’s going straight from the national limit (80 in our case, probably 90 when the monitoring was done) into the village with no distracting signs (just the village name post which automatically announces a 50kph limit, and the Zone 30 sign a bit later on).
It is still a small minority that drive beyond their ability and the road conditions. These people will always drive badly and cause most of the accidents but we all get swept up in the ever tighter speed enforcement. I drove for a living all my working life and never caused an accident doing 30,000 + miles per year for 35 years of sensible driving, I probably got 4 or 5 speeding tickets in over 1 million miles. Yet I have now had 2 speeding fines in the last 25,000 miles and 5 years. Am I a worse driver now? I’m certainly more paranoid!
It’s a very, very large minority that do in my neck of the woods
There is a degree of integration in some cars. For example my car uses GPS and reading road signs to figure out the limit (because the GPS may not be up to date) which it displays on the windscreen along with actual speed, if I exceed the limit the limit discreetly flashes, that enough for me With more and more cars having a degree of autonomous driving more integration, for better or worse, will come.
I don’t understand, surely you just put the speed limiter (cruise control?) on to whatever the limit is and you can’t speed, at least that’s how it works on my car.
Yep, last month I lost 1 point for doing 88 in what I thought was a 90 limit. It had been 90 but I missed the limit change on the N147. I have travelled the same road since and the speed does vary between 80 and 90.
I dont exceed 80 anywhere now other than auto route when I set my speed limiter to 100.
Yes, but every time the limit changes you have to re-set the limiter entering and leaving a village -90-70-50-70-90. Wouldn’t it be easier if your sat nav did it automatically so you are not distracted re-setting it every time? I tend to leave mine on 50 for villages and towns and just keep looking at the needle to make sure it remains at or below 90 or 70 where relevant.
This may seem a bit old fashioned but I believe it’s better to pay attention and drive at a speed suitable for the conditions, keeping within the posted limit, rather than relying on (potentially unreliable) technology.
Not knowing what the limit is for a stretch of road implies insufficient attention and I have been guilty of that - and fined for it. I tried to learn from the experience.
Thats fine when you know the area! I once got fined for doing 45 on a dual carriageway coming out of Loughton, Essex. The speed limit was 40, I thought it was 60 and was accelerating at the time I was zapped by a mobile unit
Much as I hate to admit it, I do potentially have the tiniest bit of sympathy for Robert Jenrick, nabbed at 68 in a “40” zone - which was, in fact, on a motorway.
That’s very true - but if you don’t know the area then you need to make an even greater effort to make sure you’re taking in all the available information.
I’m going to confess to a bit of idiocy on Monday. Trundling along, in excess of the speed limit, I spotted a camera and slowed down. Bizarrely, I then became somewhat fixated on the camera and didn’t notice my speed drift back up and I got flashed at 86 in an 80.
I confess I’m often below the speed limit in residential areas, in case something jumps out from behind a bush/car/poubelle.
And it’s very rare that I don’t know the speed limit of the bit of road I’m on. Maybe I’m excessively cautious, but I feel uncomfortable if I’m not sure.
This may seem a bit old fashioned but I believe it’s better to pay attention and drive at a speed suitable for the conditions, keeping within the posted limit, rather than relying on (potentially unreliable) technology.
That’s fine as long as the authorities have the same perception as you as to what is ‘a speed suitable for the conditions, keeping within the posted limit,’. This is not always the case. I know of at least one road in this departement (24) where they have lifted the limit in twisty hilly sections but not in safer level ones, where they have a camera. Is it too much to assume that they are out to make money rather than make the roads safer?
Depends to an extent where the revenue goes - there’s a persistent myth in the UK that the police and/or councils put up speed cameras “to make money” - but the fines go straght into the Government’s coffers so there no local benefit.
Several of my cars past and present place the speedometer in the centre of the dash rather than in front of the driver, this is a distraction when you have to constantly divert your eyes from the road ahead so I usually add some tech as others mentioned that may ping if you go over a known speed limit. Tried a few aftermarket head up displays, nice idea but seldom as good as claimed. Driver aids to prevent getting a ticket, as I, and reading many others post we dont set out to break the law but its such an easy nick especially if the cameras are on a slight downhill, despite “the cameras are placed in accident areas” claim by those in control there are not many on uphill sections, or are they but I dont seem to notice those?
UK speed camera offenders may well be given the opportunity to take a course instead of a penalty. The courses are run by private companies (RAC is one) who charge around £100 from which the police force involved get an arrangement fee of £25 or so. Only one course within a three year period of any of the three types is now permitted which closed a loophole in this restriction.
With more and more cars having a degree of autonomous driving more integration, for better or worse, will come.